Ukraine's Got Talent

This may only mean so much to me because I lived in Ukraine, but I think it resonates with anyone who understands the ravages of war and how they affect families. Living in Ukraine I learned how much WWII affected them due to the memorials & monuments everywhere, the holidays they have in honor of their servicemen, and May 9th, Victory Day. It is impossible to forget by the way they respectfully refuse to let those that died for their country's memories die as well. Thank you to my friend's Angela & Tricia for passing it on. I wish these kinds of talents were applauded here in America. This woman is amazing and brought me to tears!
ps...the words at the end are "You're Always Near", like we would say, "Always in our Hearts."



From Telegraph.co.uk ~

Sand artist Kseniya Simonova, winner of Ukraine's Got Talent, becomes internet hit
Sand artist, Kseniya Simonova, who moved audiences to tears as she won Ukraine’s Got Talent, has become an online sensation with more than two million hits.

By Ian Johnston
Published: 10:45AM BST 19 Sep 2009

Miss Simonova, 24, drew a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II.

One video clip of her work on the television talent show has been viewed by two million users alone.

The images, projected onto a large screen, moved many in the audience to tears and she won the top prize of about £75,000.

She begins by creating a scene showing a couple sitting holding hands on a bench under a starry sky, but then warplanes appear and the happy scene is obliterated.

It is replaced by a woman’s face crying, but then a baby arrives and the woman smiles again. Once again war returns and Miss Simonova throws the sand into chaos from which a young woman’s face appears.

She quickly becomes an old widow, her face wrinkled and sad, before the image turns into a monument to an Unknown Soldier.

This outdoor scene becomes framed by a window as if the viewer is looking out on the monument from within a house.

In the final scene, a mother and child appear inside and a man standing outside, with his hands pressed against the glass, saying goodbye.

The Great Patriotic War, as it is called in Ukraine, resulted in one in four of the population being killed with eight to 11 million deaths out of a population of 42 million.